IT is an epic tale of monsters, beasts and brigands that was brought to life with $1.5 million of crowdfunding. Today, US games maker inXile Entertainment invites players to enter a fantastical version of 18th-century Scotland as it launches its latest title.

The Bard’s Tale IV: Barrows Deep returns to a world first seen in 1985, when the original instalment of the role playing series was introduced for Apple systems.

That spawned sequels that extended over other PCs, with players invited to help “a handful of unproven young warriors, junior magic users, a couple of bards barely old enough to drink, and some out of work rogues” to resist evil hoards and defend “a small but harmonious country town called Skara Brae”.

Launching the crowdfunding appeal in 2015, inXile founder Brian Fargo praised the “classic” game for introducing “music and art into the genre”.

Now the completed follow-up is being launched across the world, featuring Gaelic song and a score composed by Simple Minds bassist Ged Grimes.

Spanning more than 30 separate tunes, it features the vocal talents of 16-year-old Peigi Barker, who previously provided the childhood voice of rebel princess Merida in Disney Pixar blockbuster Brave. It also includes 82-year-old singer and piper Rona Lightfoot, who blazed a trail for women pipers in the 1970s and became the first female to compete at the Northern Meeting and in London’s Bratach Gorm contest.

A 40-strong choir is also included and production bosses are so confident in the soundtrack – which they say encapsulates “the Gaelic essence of Scotland” – that it will be released as a separate feature to the game, and will be available to stream on the Spotify service, with downloads through iTunes.

A spokesman said: “A breadth of Gaelic artists, who span generations, collaborated with Grimes to record an authentic soundtrack for the game which uses a central character, The Bard, to tell the story of life in ancient Scotland through a virtual Highland landscape.”

The National:

Dundee-born Grimes, above – who is currently touring the US and Canada with the Alive and Kicking hitmakers – says the result reflects the country’s “outstanding” talent.

He said: “Scotland’s traditional and Gaelic music is an intrinsic part of our history and culture. Its beautiful melodies reach deep into our souls and its magical songs, passed down through the centuries, tell stories of a proud ancient civilisation. When composing the scores for the Bard’s Tale, I wanted to capture the breadth of outstanding voices and musicianship that exists in my homeland and create a soundtrack which reflected Scotland’s unique musical heritage.

“These ancient songs tell us about how life was lived long ago but can also give us wisdom, vision and hope for the future.”

It is hoped that the release proves so successful that Bard’s Tale IV can leave the digital world and become reality – as a theatrical production.

A spokesperson for inExile commented: “A live show of the Bard’s Tale IV Barrows Deep incorporating the game, music and voice acting from the game is being planned for 2019.”